


Do it for the Candy Corn

by maddienole



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Family Bonding, Family Feels, Gen, Halloween, Happy Ending, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Number Five | The Boy Has Issues, Number Five | The Boy Needs A Hug, Number Five | The Boy Whump, Number Five | The Boy-centric, Pre-Canon, Sensory Overload, Sneaking Out, Trick or Treating, Underage Drinking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-22
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:27:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27142424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maddienole/pseuds/maddienole
Summary: The date is October 31st 2001, and the Umbrella Academy faces their greatest challenge yet: Trick or Treating.What can go wrong?Or:A Halloween three-shot featuring a lot of family bonding, a little Five whump and way more candy corn than is strictly necessary.
Relationships: Number Five | The Boy (Umbrella Academy) & Everyone, The Hargreeves Family
Comments: 50
Kudos: 205





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was another fic that was supposed to be a one-shot but soon got away from me. Alas.

It started with the DVD player.

It was an old, dingy thing that Five had _borrowed_ several months back from the nearest Radio Shack and was used quite frequently by him and Klaus during the latter’s mausoleum nights.

Now word had gotten around - _Five had no idea how_ \- about him obtaining such an item, and soon enough Ben asked if he could join them for movie night.

And this was.... _fine_. Ben was the most tolerable of his siblings anyways, and Five didn’t mind sharing his precious cargo with the next number down the line.

Then Vanya started asking.

Then Diego.

It started going downhill from there.

Before he knew it, all six of his siblings were gathering around for movie night - _now relocated to Luther’s room because it was the biggest_ \- where they each (tried) taking turns in picking out the next soon-to-be-missing film from Blockbusters.

Let it be known that Five found all of his siblings’ choices to be utterly deplorable. Luther kept insisting on _The Mighty Ducks_ and Diego had extinguished every possible buddy cop film in existence. Klaus was picking some of the worst rated movies on purpose - _Five would rather chew off his own foot then sit through Howard the Duck again_ \- and Allison was _far_ to into rom-coms.

But a month had passed and October rolled around. Another birthday had come and gone with little to no fanfare as the air began to cool and the leaves began to redden.

Halloween was afoot.

The Hargreeves siblings had no reason to be excited about such an event. While other children got to dream about costumes and candy, Five was busy training and theorizing about rewriting the laws of physics.

Even so, the movie selection at Blockbusters shifted with the change in seasons, and soon Five entered the store to face rows upon rows of pumpkins and scarecrows.

Vanya had suggested _It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown_ as a way of celebrating the season _,_ which in turn set off the new trend of going through every Halloween related movie that Blockbusters had to offer. Five wouldn’t lie and say that he enjoyed _Halloweentown_ or _Hocus Pocus_ \- _he found them to be much too childish for his liking_ \- but at least found some comfort in the fact that his siblings were having a decent time. It took maybe a week of brain melting PG bore-fests before Five managed to sneak in a couple of more... _interesting_ films. And by interesting, he meant movies that he definitely would not be allowed to get into if he decided to go to a theater.

“But we’re _twelve_ now,” Five tried explaining to them. They weren’t children anymore. Twelve was almost thirteen and thirteen was only a couple of years shy of rated-R, so really there was _nothing_ wrong with stretching their boundaries a bit.

Or so he thought.

Vanya nearly fainted at _Alien_ and Ben actually _did_ throw up about halfway through _Saw_. They made it about ten minutes into _Chucky_ before Luther tried smashing the screen in. The night ended with another re-watch of _Beetlejuice_ , which meant another two hours of Klaus gushing over the _pitch perfect_ portrayal of the underworld and the creatures residing within it.

Halloween itself was drawing closer, now only a week away. It shouldn’t have meant anything - _it hadn’t meant anything for twelve years now_ \- but Five couldn’t help but feel a twinge in his chest every time he laid eyes on a pumpkin in a yard or black and orange lights strung up on neighborhood stores.

Is this what normal children felt like?

He knew his siblings were feeling it too, the longing in Vanya and Allison’s eyes were a terribly kept secret, especially around father. Maybe it was the plethora of Halloween movies they had watched as of late, but even the sight of a witch or a cauldron was becoming unbearable.

It was Diego who finally spoke.

“We should go trick or treating.”

He said it so matter-of-factly, as though it was the obvious solution to all of their problems.

He was met with silence, if only for a moment.

“Oh, I’m sure daddy-o will love that,” Klaus finally snorted.

“We _can’t_ ,” Luther added on sternly. “We aren’t allowed.”

_“Really? I had no idea.”_

_“Let’s not argue...”_

_“No. Let’s.”_

_“Seriously, guys?”_

_“Why shouldn’t we be able to go trick or treating?”_

_“Why should we?”_

Five sighed, shifting over to Ben and Vanya. His sister was biting her lower lip, looking fearfully on at the potential brawl between the first two numbers. Allison was rubbing her temples in annoyance while Klaus looked like he was participating in a football watch party.

“Should we...stop them?” Vanya whispered.

Five shrugged.

“Maybe if we’re lucky they’ll knock each other out.”

Vanya let out a giggle.

_“All it’s going to do is get us in trouble...”_

_“....so if daddy looks at you the wrong way you’ll internally combust....”_

_“....I’m just trying to follow the rules....”_

_“....rules don’t count if they’re stupid...”_

_“....they’re not stupid....”_

_“....we’re literally breaking the rules right now just by being up here, idiot....”_

Ben looked warily at Five.

“You know,” he started slowly. “I....think trick or treating would be rather fun.”

He could see Vanya’s eyes widen.

“But...dad won’t let us.”

“I mean....” he trailed off, glancing nervously at the continuing argument between their brothers. “Diego’s right, isn’t he? We’re technically not allowed to be watching movies either, but we’ve been doing it for months now.”

“But you’re talking about sneaking out....”

“Five does it all the time, don’t you Five?” Ben interrupted.

Five couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

“Yeah, but I’m _good_ at it. It helps to have powers that lend towards mission impossible style getaways from this hellhole.”

_“Why do you always act like you’re in charge?”_

_“I’m number one....”_

_“So? That doesn’t make you special...”_

“For god’s sake!” Allison stood up, shooting a death glare at her toddler siblings. “Will both of you shut up?”

The room went silent once more. Luther’s eyes looked like they were bulging out of his head. Diego was trying - _and failing_ \- at hiding a snicker while Klaus looked like his favorite team just scored a touchdown.

“ _I_ say,” she started, sweeping her arm across the room, “that we take a vote.”

“On....what?” Luther asked quietly.

“Whether or not we go trick or treating.”

Diego pumped his fist in the air.

“ _Knew_ it. I knew you guys wanted in.”

“But....dad....” Luther sputtered. “We’re not allowed....”

“Screw dad....”

“ _Hush_ , Diego,” Allison warned, crossing her arms. She turned towards Five.

“What do you guys think?”

Ben’s response was immediate. “Yeah. I want to do it.”

Five side-eyed him but remained quiet.

“So that’s two....”

_“But dad....”_

_“Will you shut up already about dad?”_

“I’m with Ben,” Allison confirmed. “So that’s three. We only need one more for a majority.”

_“This is ridiculous....”_

_“You’re ridiculous....”_

_“....I’m not the one obsessed with knives....”_

_“....no, you’re obsessed with dad...”_

“ _I heard a rumor_ that you both shut up until the vote is finished!” Allison hissed, looking ready to pull her hair out.

The blissful silence sprung once again. Diego looked positively murderous. Luther looked like he was going to cry.

“I’ll do it,” Klaus finally piped up. “I want candy. What say you, Fivey?”

Five wanted to look noncommittal, but inside he couldn’t help but feel excitement.

What kind of candy would he get?

Who - _or what_ \- would he dress up as?

How late would they stay out?

How.....

“You still with us?” Allison asked, eyebrows furrowed.

He blinked.

“Oh, uh....” he shrugged nonchalantly. “I mean....”

“C’mon Fivey!” Klaus cut in excitedly. “Do it for the candy corn!”

_Candy corn?_

Five never had candy corn. Candy corn was one of those mythological things that the Hargreeves children would never get to lay eyes on. Maybe that was reason enough to go out.

_I want the candy corn._

“Yeah,” he finally said. “I guess I’ll come along.”

He eyed Klaus, who was practically vibrating on the floor.

“But _only_ for the candy corn,” he added on.

Klaus smiled, looking more than content.

“ _Only_ for the candy corn,” he conceded. “Got it.”

“Alright,” Allison nodded. “So it’s settled...”

“You _didn’t_ ask Vanya,” Five interrupted. His other sister recently found interest in the floor, twisting around strands of her hair between her fingers.

“Oh, uh....” Allison at least had the decency to look embarrassed. “Do...do you want to come, Vanya?”

“Of _course_ she...,” Five stopped when he felt Vanya’s small hand on his knee. He cleared his throat.

“I mean if she wants to come she can, right Vee?”

Vanya shot him a soft smile.

“I _want_ to come,” she confirmed.

“So that’s six of us.”

Allison turned back to Luther.

“ _I heard a rumour_ you both can talk again.”

“You’re all going to get in trouble,” Luther glowered.

“No one‘s _forcing_ you to come,” Allison said.

“ _No one wants you to come_ ,” Diego mumbled under his breath.

Klaus let out another snort.

“I heard that!”

“You didn’t hear sh-“

“So what about dad?” Ben interrupted hastily. “I mean....how are you going to get past him?”

“Well,” Allison paused. “I haven’t really figured that part out yet.”

“I say we stab him.”

_“No!”_

_“Yes!”_

Vanya giggled. Allison rolled her eyes. Five wanted a nap.

“Maybe we can fiddle with the cameras and Five can warp us out?”

“Or,” Five started, getting to his feet. “Maybe he could... _I don’t know_....hear a _rumor_ of some sort? Telling him to leave us alone for the night?”

“Oh, absolutely not...” Luther cried. “You wouldn’t....”

Allison looked distinctly uncomfortable.

“I don’t know....”

“You’re not _seriously_ considering....”

“SHUT UP LUTHER,” the entire room hissed. Even Vanya. Five was strangely proud.

“C’mon Allison,” Klaus whined. “Telling the ol’ bag of bones to F off to his study for the night never hurt anybody.”

“He deserves worse,” Ben mumbled.

“I guess...”

“Then it’s decided!” Diego grinned. “We’re going out.”

_Hallelujah._

With that settled, the next thing to worry about were costumes. Five was terribly uncreative in that venture, and regardless, there wasn’t that much to work with in this house anyways. He blinked out a couple of times to gather some materials - needles, thread, glue, scissors, etc, and left them with Allison in the hopes that she would come up with something interesting. It _had_ occurred to him that he could probably just steal whatever costume he wanted out of various big chain stores, but his sister was insistent on making them at home. She wasn’t quite as amenable to his klepto tendencies as his other siblings were.

Except for the art supplies apparently.

Those didn’t count.

When the day finally came, Five couldn’t help but feel nervous. He shouldn’t feel nervous - _what was there to be nervous about?_ \- but his stomach was a bit jumpier than usual. He didn’t eat much of his dinner. It was good thing, he supposed. Saves more room for the candy.

_For the candy corn_.

They were doing this for the candy corn. Still, that didn’t stop dinner from passing by achingly slow, and Five could see Allison fidgeting in her seat. Luther still looked pissed and Diego still looked smug.

God, his brothers were predicable. It was getting boring at this point.

Dinner _did_ finally come to a close. It was nearing eight o’clock now, time to get going. Five gave Allison a swift nod of encouragement, to which she responded with a small smile before trailing dad out of the dining room.

It took about ten minutes before she reentered, looking paler than usual.

“Did you do it?” Diego asked immediately, just to be met with an elbow in his side by Ben. “What’d I say?”

Allison nodded, arms wrapped around his stomach.

“Yeah,” she murmured. “It feels wrong though. But he and Pogo won’t bother us until sunrise.”

“Heck yeah!” Klaus exclaimed. “Guess who’s getting candy tonight?”

“Unbelievable,” Luther muttered.

“Sour puss,” Klaus frowned, sticking his tongue out.

_“Mature, Klaus.”_

_“I’ll have you know that maturity is my middle name.”_

_“We don’t have middle names.”_

_“It was a joke, Luther. A joke...”_

“Guys!” Five hissed. “We are wasting time!” He glared at Luther. “If you don’t want to go, then stay here. Read a book. Knit a sweater. I don’t care. Nobody is making you come, so stop acting like an ass.”

He could hear the giggles breaking out. He sighed, turning to Allison. “Are the costumes ready?”

Let it be known that Allison wasn’t entirely terrible at designing DIY Halloween costumes, though Five probably wasn’t the best judge of clothing in any sense of the word. He would go around in the same dirt and blood-stained clothing for days if mother didn’t force him to change.

She ended up making Diego a “Men in Black”- esque costume, which was easy enough given that they already had access to collared shirts and ties with their own uniform. All she needed was a decent looking suit jacket and sunglasses that Five nicked from a seedy looking thrift shop and he was good. Ben was a “bread winner,” which basically amounted to him wearing a simple t-shirt and jeans, accentuated with a headband, some plastic medals and several loafs of actual bread.

Ben thought it was funny. Five thought it was stupid.

Klaus was a ghost. Like...he literally cut out two holes in some spare sheets and draped it over himself.

“It’s ironic,” he said with a giggle.

Five couldn’t help but laugh along with him.

Vanya was a mummy, and all of them would deny having any knowledge on how all the toilet paper ran out on the first-floor bathroom. Allison was a....cat? She had cat ears so that’s probably what she was trying to pull off.

Five chose his own costume. Or...what _he_ considered to be a costume.

“And what is that, exactly?” Allison asked while drawing whiskers on her face with some type of makeup utensil.

“I’m Carl Sagan.”

“And....who’s that?” Klaus asked underneath his sheet.

“Famous astronomer and astrophysicist who studied the production of amino acids....”

“I lost you after _famous_.”

“That turtleneck makes you look like a nerd,” Diego snorted.

“I really wish you would’ve worn what I made you, Five. You’d be an adorable vampire...”

“Can we _go_ now?” Vanya interrupted.

“Seconded,” Ben said.

Allison groaned.

“ _Fine_.” She placed her makeup device on her desk. “Everyone have their pillowcases?”

And set of nods greeted her and they set off, waving to Luther as they left the mansion. Number One looked ready to self-destruct, but wisely held his tongue.

Even after stepping onto the sidewalk, Five could feel his stomach churning within him. There wasn’t anything to be nervous about, right? Hundreds of thousands of children did this every year. He took a deep breath, finally following his cluster of siblings down the street.

_What could possibly go wrong?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If there was anyone wondering, _yes_ this story takes place in the same universe as my other TUA fic, [ Stay ](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25871269) (and [ Whiteout ](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25924978/chapters/63010387), though that one is not immediately relevant given it takes place post-canon.)
> 
> As always, the other fics aren't required to understand this story but may provide a bit more context for certain elements such as the DVD player and Klaus's mausoleum times with Five.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was brought to you by that one Halloween party I went to my sophomore year that had an actual pumpkin keg. The beer was awful. That is all.

The candy-receiving process wasn’t as difficult as Five imagined. Just knock, wait, and smile as the adults parted with handfuls of varying-quality treats. Five found that he was more of a chocolate person and would gladly trade any starburst or gumball with his simple-minded siblings.

Their group wasn’t the only one on out tonight either. The streets were alive with _sound_ and _voices_ and _laughter_. Children of all ages wandered about with swollen bags of sugar and carbs as the streets lit up in orange and yellow hues.

Is this what he was missing this whole time?

What it was like to have _fun_?

To be a kid?

The pain in his stomach worsened.

An hour must have passed but it felt like lesser. Klaus didn’t have the patience to wait until he got home and started sucking on a couple of blow pops he received several houses back. Diego was trying to negotiate with Vanya over a full-sized Hershey’s bar that an older couple gave her (as opposed to Number Two’s pitiful grape jolly rancher). Allison took the lead most of the time, mapping out their route to maximize candy reception.

Five was content in staying back, eyeing the sights. Ben didn’t seem to have much of a problem sticking behind in the rear of the group either, lugging his growing pillowcase over his shoulder.

“At this rate we aren’t going to be able to carry these home,” Ben said tiredly.

“It doesn’t help that you brought like three loaves of bread with you.”

“I’m a _breadwinner_. It’s my whole shtick.”

“Mhmmm.”

“At least I’m not wearing a turtleneck.”

“Turtlenecks _are_ cool.”

“On Mars maybe....”

“Hey guys?” Allison called from up front. “How about over there?”

She was pointing to a house. A big house. A _loud_ house. It was situated at the end of the street and was alive with people and noise and lights.

Five felt nauseous again.

“I....I don’t think they’re giving out candy over there,” Ben said quietly.

“No shit,” Diego snorted. “That’s a full-on house party, dear sister of mine.”

“I _know_ that! I think it would be fun...”

“But....it’s full of high schoolers....” Vanya whispered.

_“She’s got a point....”_

_“Oh c’mon, we’re only a couple of years off from high school anyways....”_

_“She’s also got a point....”_

_“....I thought we were supposed to be trick or treating....”_

_“....oooh do ya think they have alcohol in there?”_

_“....this is a bad idea....”_

_“....they aren’t even checking at the door. We could just walk in....”_

_“No we can’t!”_

_“This might be the only time we can go to a party! Like...an actual party!”_

_“....still a bad idea....”_

“ _Well_ ,” Allison huffed, arms crossed. “ _I’m_ going to check it out.” Noticing Five’s acidic look, she added, “only for a couple of minutes, that’s all.”

“I’m with her,” Klaus nodded. “I’m up for a party. Like a legit one, not that bull that dad throws.”

Diego shrugged. “I guess a couple of minutes will be fine...”

Five glanced at Ben and Vanya. Neither of them looked particularly enthused. Five wasn’t either, but also came to the conclusion that he couldn’t just leave his siblings at the mercy of a bunch of drunk high schoolers. He held Vanya’s hand even tighter.

“Fine,” he said through gritted teeth. “ _We’re_ staying in the front. And if you’re not at the door in fifteen minutes we’ll drag you out of there.”

_“Yes!”_

_“Like you could drag me...”_

_“Diego, we won, let it go.”_

_“.....fine.”_

It really wasn’t hard to get in. Nobody was monitoring the door and there wasn’t a camera in sight. There were, however, several intoxicated teenagers lying sprawled out on the front lawn, giggling at who knows what. Maybe if they were smarter, they would have recognized this as a sign to leave - _as Five certainly did_ \- but he soon found himself stepping through the front entrance.

And.... _god_ was it loud.

It was so.... _so_ loud.

Five hated noise. He hated noise and loudness and colors and _people_.

Tens...hundreds?....so many people. Older people - _teenagers_ \- dancing and singing and rubbing up against one another. Kissing and thrusting their hips.

It was awful.

It was safe to say that the Hargreeves brood were rather isolated growing up, and Five knew that better than most. He didn’t mind it per say, but perhaps some form of socialization in his youth may have better prepared him for this. Five would spend his nights doing equations, sometimes in the company of Ben and Vanya.

He didn’t do _people_.

He didn’t do noise and _touching_ and lights and loudness.

Five could feel his heart practically beating out of his chest. He grabbed Vanya’s hand - _and Ben’s as well_ \- holding on for dear life. He didn’t belong here. None of them belonged here. Sure, Klaus and Allison could easily pass off as high schoolers. Diego and Vanya were pushing it, but it was still feasible. Ben unfortunately looked his age and Five even younger. He was twelve now - _twelve!_ \- almost a teenager, but looked nine, ten at most. He was always so small and he hated it.

He could feel Ben nudging him, motioning towards a different room with far less people. Five gave a slight nod as they began to push themselves through a sea of sweaty, half dressed high schoolers. The floor was sticky and it was terribly hot in here - it _shouldn’t_ be this hot, not in October. The lights were blinding and they were _everywhere_ , flashing all sorts of headache-inducing colors across the walls and floors and up the stairs. The trio edged their way through to what looked like a storage room of some sort.

Five didn’t care, there weren’t any people in it and that’s all that mattered.

“That was awful,” Vanya whispered.

“This was a mistake,” Ben agreed.

Five wanted to talk, but he was afraid if he’d open his mouth his might end up dry heaving.

He hated, _hated_ noise.

_“You okay Five?”_

He bit his tongue, trying to control his breathing.

_“I think he’s hyperventilating, Ben.”_

_“In and out? Remember like mom said? In and out.”_

_In and out. In and out. In and out._

This was stupid. Five _needed_ control. He liked being in control of himself and of the situation. Father would be appalled at his behavior right now. How was he supposed to go out and fight bad guys if he couldn’t handle a bunch of drunken teenagers? He had _powers_ , for god sakes. He could take out everyone in here if he wanted to, couldn’t he?

_In and out. In and out. In and..._

“Five?” Vanya asked gently. “Maybe we should find the others and leave.”

He blinked, trying to regain control of his faculties.

“Yeah that’s um...yeah...”

He could see the flickering glances between Ben and Vanya...sympathy was it? No. Five despised sympathy. He was _not_ weak. He was not....he _could not_ be weak. There was no room for weakness in the Umbrella Academy.

Time to take back control.

“I can see Klaus by the screen door,” he asserted, pointing towards his curly haired brother who seemed all too interested in whatever he was drinking out of red plastic cups. “I’ll go get him, you two stick together and find Allison and Diego. We’re leaving _now_.”

Vanya nodded, twisting her hair around again.

“Are you sure _you’re_....”

“I’m _fine_!” he hissed, perhaps louder than intended. Noting the look on Vanya’s face, he added, “seriously, I’m just...people, you know?”

“Yeah,” she whispered. “I know. Just be careful, okay?”

“I’m _always_ careful.”

Ben snorted. “That’s a fat lie and you know it.”

“That’s not... _whatever_. Go find our siblings.”

Before Ben could answer, Five stepped back out into the chaos.

_In and out. In and out. In and out._

This was fine. He was fine. He was always fine. There was no reason _not_ to be fine.

Just.....don’t focus on the people. Or the lights or the sounds and smells.

_Try not to touch anything._

_Or anyone._

_And especially don’t make eye contact._

He didn’t need anyone questioning why there was a clear non-high school kid roaming around in an alcohol infused house party.

Five did eventually make it over to Klaus, who was still drinking in front of what looked like five or so onlookers. There was a carved pumpkin on the table - _a real one by the looks of it_ \- with a spout jammed into the side. A Halloween themed keg, if you will.

_Nasty._

Not that it was stopping Klaus. Five was starting to regret introducing his brother to alcohol. He seemed all too accustomed to the taste now.

“ _Klaus_!” he hissed, grabbing his brother’s arm before he could take another sip.

“Fivey!” he slurred. “You made it! Look, I’ve got a fan club....”

“We’re leaving. _Now_.”

“Now? But we just got here!”

“I said _now_ , Klaus. Come on.”

“But he was about to down the sixth cup!” some kid - _probably a freshmen_ \- in a skeleton shirt complained.

“Show’s over.” Five yanked on his brothers’ arm, trying to ignore the incessant pouting. “Let’s go.”

“Where are the others?”

“I don’t know. Ben and Vanya are looking.”

“I can help!”

“You aren’t doing shit, Klaus. Are you drunk?”

The pout grew larger.

“Not _drunk_ per say _,”_

_Fantastic._

_“...maybe a ‘lil_ tipsy _....”_

“Alright, never mind,” Five groaned.

_In and out. In and out. In and out._

Was it just him, or were there more people now than before? They kept _accumulating_. Like viruses.

He finally managed to yank Klaus towards the front door.

“ _Stay_ here,” he instructed.

“We’re you going?”

“To find Ben and Vanya. Or...well at least one of our siblings.”

“Well what am _I_ supposed to do?”

“Stand. Sit. Contemplate your existence. I don’t care, _just stop drinking_ and don’t talk to anyone.”

“Boo.”

Five sighed, turning back around. He made a mental note to talk to Klaus later about his abhorrent alcohol consumption, but now was not the time. One sibling down, two more to go.

Five stepped back into the chaos, trying to suppress the dry heaves. He could try looking outside, he could see a fair number of people in the backyard. But that would involve pushing through at least twenty warm and sweaty bodies that had clustered in front of him.

_Is this supposed to be fun?_

Father had taught him to dance, but not like _this._ It was ballroom dancing - _formal_ _dancing_ \- the type of dancing where you had to put your hands around a girl’s waist and try not to trip over your feet. Five and Vanya were always paired together - _thank god_ \- but it was still slightly embarrassing to dance with his sister who was a head taller than he was.

_It’s just not fair._

Regardless, whatever this was, it _wasn’t_ dancing. It was.... _animalistic_ , almost. People were rubbing and clawing and kissing, it was almost like watching a nature documentary in real time.

There was something seriously wrong with humanity.

Five shook his head, glancing towards the staircase. He would have to try upstairs. They _had_ to be upstairs, right? At the very least, he could get away from all these _people_. He tried squeezing his way through the mass of human bodies up to the carpeted stairway, stopping briefly to catch his breath.

It was awfully hot in here, wasn’t it?

_In and out. In and out. In and out._

One foot in front of the other. This wasn’t hard. This shouldn’t have to be hard. Father told them that he would introduce them - _The Umbrella Academy_ \- to the world in just a few short months. He would be out there in the field, fighting all sorts of bad guys and saving lives.

So why was this so hard?

It was just _noise_ , dammit. And people. So.... _so_ many people. Maybe he should ask father about those pills he has Vanya take. But then again, that would be admitting to some form of weakness that needed to be suppressed with drugs.

And Number Five was _not_ weak.

He eventually made his way upstairs, the sound of music and chatter and thumping against the wooden floors still ringing in his ears. He was going deaf. He certainly was going deaf....something _somewhere_ on his body had to be permanently damaged by this Halloween misadventure. He rubbed at his ears, at his head.... _god_ , his head hurt. It was one of those headaches that started at the base of your skull and started to spread....pulsing against his brain.

Five was prone to migraines, whether through his sleep schedule - _or lack thereof_ , diet - _or lack thereof_ , or perhaps some genetic disposition for it. He wondered - _if only briefly_ \- if his mother had migraines. His _real_ mother.

He wondered if she remembered him.

He wondered if she _loved_ him.

Was...he crying?

No, he didn’t have time to cry. Crying was a weakness, father would tell him. He _hated_ crying.

Five sniffled, wiping away the tears that were threatening to break loose, and peered into what looked like a bathroom. A small thing with some ugly mustard colored shower curtains and a bathmat that looked as though it survived both world wars. Nothing going on in there.

 _Next_.

There were three other rooms on the second floor, along with a linen closet with some unfolded - _and suspiciously damp_ \- towels. One of the rooms was devoid of human life, containing just a desk and a pile of books on the stained carpeted floor - some makeshift office, perhaps?

Five tried the next room, or more appropriately stood outside the next room. This one had a closed door and some.... _unsavory_....sounds emanating from within its walls. Moaning and thumping and.... _god_ , humans were _unbearable_. Is this all they think about?

Five backed away slowly. He wasn’t touching that one. There was one room left to go on this floor and if that failed, he would have to try outside. He wondered if Ben and Vanya had already found the other two and were waiting for him. He then wondered if Klaus had managed to stay put. Somehow he doubted it.

Five edged towards the final room, tucked away in the corner. Is this where Diego and Allison ended up? He could hear people in there - _several_ _people_ \- female and male. But they didn’t sound like his siblings. They sounded _older_.

More teenagers.

He should leave. It would make sense to leave. None of his siblings were in this area of the house, so they all must be downstairs. But _something_ just felt...off. The girl in there, her voice...

She sounded _frightened_.

Five edged just slightly closer, peeking through the crack in the open door. It must have been somebody’s bedroom by the looks of it, very similar looking to Allison’s with the posters of various boy bands and clothes all over the carpet. And there was a girl in there - _only one_ \- pressing against the wall in the company of two much larger teenage boys.

He should leave.

This wasn’t his business.

....or was it?

 _“You were born to save the world,”_ father told him. “ _To help those that cannot help themselves.”_

The room reeked of beer. The boys reeked of masculine arrogance.

Words were being said - _salaciously_ \- the girl’s hand clenched, her eyes darted around like an animal being cornered by some larger predator. The boys kept talking, kept _moving_ , one put his hand on her shoulder, another around her waist and...and...

Five didn’t even think, not really.

What was there to think about? He warped almost out of instinct, kicking the larger boy in the knee and taking some satisfaction in his wail of pain.

_“What the fuck...”_

_“....who....”_

_“....shit...”_

Five blinked again to the other side of the room in search of something that could be used as a weapon. He wasn’t the best hand to hand fighter - _leave that to Diego and Luther_ \- but he was small and agile and knew his way around sharp objects. Five was deadlier than either of his siblings if he was willing to be.

And now, he was certainly willing.

He grabbed the first thing he laid eyes on, a trophy of some sort. Soccer, maybe? It wasn’t sharp, but it was blunt, and for now that was good enough. He blinked back to the doorway, smashing the thing over the blonde boy’s chest before blinking back out of his reach.

_“How is he...”_

_“....fucking grab him....”_

_“....I can’t!”_

_“....he’s a goddamn freshmen, just...”_

_Too late_ , Five smiled. _This’ll be fun_. Another blink, another hit, this time slamming the base of the trophy on blond boy’s elbow, resulting in a sickening crunch. He screamed in pain, clutching his arm.

_“He’s down, Number Five. Use this to your advantage.”_

He did.

One fist connected with his face _\- or nose, more accurately_ \- another foot struck his stomach.

The girl had long since escaped the room, so it was one less thing to worry about.

Blonde boy gasped in pain, reaching out as his nose began to bleed onto his shirt. Five blinked before black haired boy could grab him from behind, and hit him square across the back with the trophy. The little head snapped off with the contact, and did nothing but enrage the larger teen.

_Shit._

He was big. _Real_ big. Football player big. There was no way Five would be able to take a 17-18 year old by himself , especially one that looked so...enraged.

 _Fine_. So be it. Five would never be the biggest person in the room anyways.

_“Fight smart, Number Five. If you can’t beat them with force, wear them down.”_

He could do that. He was doing that. Fight _smart._ He grabbed whatever he could find off the nightstand - _one of those porcelain teacups_ \- and smashed it over blonde boy’s head. He collapsed to the ground in a heap.

One down, one more to go. One quick glance told Five that the boy was still breathing - _good_. He didn’t want to _kill_ him. Just...humiliate him. Unfortunately, he wasn’t finished. He had the much bigger black-haired boy to deal with. And he looked angry.

“Come here, you little shit,” he snarled, hands balled into fists. He swung - _stupid move_ \- Five blinked away, kicking him as hard as he could in the shins. He ducked another fist aimed for his face, and another that was centimeter away from his stomach.

_Death by a thousand cuts, right?_

Five got another couple of swings in, but nothing seemed to faze the boy. There was another problem, of course.

Five was tired.

 _Very_ tired.

Blinking was getting harder as he struggled to breathe. It dawned on him - _way too late_ \- that he didn’t have enough energy in him to keep this up for much longer. He should’ve had his damn dinner.

The boy kept hurling obscenities and managed to knock Five back into the bookcase. The thing shook from the impact and things - _Five didn’t know what_ \- started falling to the floor. He wondered if anyone below could hear what was going on. He wondered if his siblings knew what was going on.

He grabbed a book - _the heaviest one he could reach_ \- and threw it at the boy’s face.

He swatted it away like it was nothing. Five tried to blink, but the misty blue around his closed fists fizzled out almost as quickly as it came.

He was done for.

Father would say to retreat. It was the logical thing to do, after all. But the boy was blocking the door. _Fine_. Better go down fighting. Five grabbed something - _a pen, it felt like_ \- and lunged, jabbing the thing into the boy’s arm with about as much force as he could muster. That gave him a second, maybe less, and Five willed his feet to move as a faster rate. But his brain was not computing with the rest of his body and he was _so utterly tired_.

The boy did not take kindly to a pen in his arm and swung back, snarling as he made contact with Five’s stomach. Things were hurting but the hurt was _everywhere_. His head hurt, his stomach hurt, his chest hurt. Nothing was working anymore. He was depleted and exhausted. The boy grabbed onto his sweater and slammed Five’s much smaller body into the wall, sending vibrations across the room.

“You little shit,” he hissed, tightening his grip. “I’ll fucking kill you. I’ll fucking...”

“Lan-guage....” Five sputtered, struggling against his grip. He was then slammed into the wall again.

_Okay, wrong thing to say._

Of course, there wasn’t much of an opportunity to say much else because this drunk football-playing asshole now had his giant hands around Five’s neck and didn’t seem to concerned about choking the life out of a very beaten twelve year old.

_So this is the end, huh?_

Well this sucked. Father would be terribly upset. Not about Five dying, obviously. But the fact that he got taken out by some intoxicated teen at a party he didn’t even want to be at in the first place. At least he wouldn’t be alive to live it down.

_I hope Allison is happy._

He couldn’t breathe, he realized. He couldn’t move much, either. His vision was starting to go spotty and the boy continued to say.... _things_....stuff that Five didn’t really care to make out. Something about “ _fucking freshmen_ ” and “ _kill you_ ”.

_Be more original, asshole._

There came a point when he stopped struggling and blackness was permeating his vision. It became harder to stay awake. Five was starting to hear voices.... _other_ voices.

 _Younger_ voices.

Lots of them, actually. Footsteps and movement and the crunching of porcelain beneath sneakers.

Oh, the gang must have arrived.

_“Five, are you....”_

_“....let him....”_

_“How did....”_

_“....is that other kid alive....”_

Five was fading _._ And then he wasn’t.

“ _I heard a rumor_ you let him go!”

Ah, Allison. Good to know she was still around. The pressure on his throat loosened as he landed on the carpet with a thump. His captor looked confused at first, which then morphed into anger. There was a whole lot of people up here now, it seemed as though half the party guests came up to check what the hell was going on up here.

Five could feel someone helping him up….someone(s). Klaus was propping him up from one side, Diego on the other.

“What happened?” Klaus whispered.

“Yeah, what the hell, Five? You couldn’t go one night without...”

“He...was... _hurting_ her...,” Five coughed, clutching his throat. “I couldn’t...”

“Geez, okay,” Diego said softly. “Always gotta be the hero, don’t you?”

“That’s _my_ Fivey,” Klaus cooed.

“Piss off and let go of me,” Five mumbled, trying to disentangle himself from his siblings. It was getting incredibly loud in this room, with people pointing to the still-unconscious blonde boy on the floor while others were pointing and glaring at black haired boy, who was apparently frozen in place due to another one of Allison’s rumors. Ben and Vanya were there as well, the latter looking like she had been crying.

“I’m okay, really,” Five said - or _sputtered_ more like. Except he _wasn’t_ okay. He felt anything but okay.

_“You aren’t looking too hot, Fivey.”_

_“He looks like shit.”_

_“Diego!”_

_“What? Am I wrong?”_

_“He was just in a fight...”_

Five felt like he was falling.

_“No? Really?”_

_“Just be nice...”_

_“I am nice. It’s not my fault we can’t go one night without something happening...”_

No, not falling. He was _floating_.

_“Uh, guys? Five really doesn’t look so...”_

He was seeing rainbows. Each color swirling around in different patterns like a kaleidoscope.

_“Five, are you...”_

The colors turned black. An inky black from somewhere far away. Or somewhere far too close. He couldn’t tell which.

“ _Five, can...”_

He was falling again, he thinks. Into the inky blackness.

_“Guys, I don’t think....”_

Faster and faster.

_“Five!”_

“I’m fine,” he mumbled, trying to stand straight. “Honestly, I’ve _never_ felt better.”

He faints.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I never _start_ my stories with the intention of beating up Five, and yet somehow it always ends up happening. Poor boy needs a nap and a hug.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is 10:25 as of posting, so I _did_ manage to get it up while it was still Halloween!
> 
> Seriously though, Happy Halloween everyone!

Five was floating in a sea of darkness.

There were voices - _some quiet, some loud_ \- all talking over one another.

_“....is he....”_

_“....but what about...”_

_“....Five?”_

_“....he’s not....”_

Five was floating. His wrists were being squeezed.... _tight_....so tight. The talking was getting louder. The talking was getting quieter.

He....was being carried. His neck was lolling and it _hurt._ Everything hurt and people were _still_ talking.

_“bring him over....”_

_“...et him down....”_

_“....away fr....”_

It was warm then cold. He could feel the wind on his face, on his neck. He was outside.

_“....support his....”_

_“....you have....”_

_“....almost...”_

Five felt something beneath him. Sharp and pointy and itchy.

_Grass._

People were poking him. _Prodding_ him. People were talking and shouting and...and... _crying?_

His head hurt.

_“C’mon Five, open your eyes.”_

_“Please Five...”_

Vanya?

It _sounded_ like Vanya.

The world was black and cold and Five was _struggling_.

He groaned - _a soft one_ \- trying to force his eyes open.

_“Guys! I think...”_

_“...waking up...”_

People kept shaking him and prodding him. His eyes snapped open.

The world was still dark. There were colors of some sort, but Five had trouble distinguishing them from each other - the world was just a blurry mess of objects that he couldn’t quite discern.

His head was pounding. His throat hurt.

It took another couple of seconds for the color blobs to form into something that could be considered human. Vanya was still crying. Klaus didn’t have his sheet anymore. He was.... _where_ was he? Five could still see the house party if he squinted above the tree line.

They must have carried him pretty far.

“....Five?” Allison questioned softly. “Are you...”

“I’m.... _fine_...” he rasped.

His throat was _burning_ now.

His siblings exploded.

_“You’re obviously not fine...”_

_“...you look like shit...”_

_“....yeah we all feel fine after being throttled....”_

Vanya sniffled, grabbing his hand.

“I’m glad you’re okay,” she murmured into his neck.

Five groaned, trying to stand up.

_“Five....maybe you shouldn’t...”_

_“....slow down...”_

“I said I’m _fine,”_ he hissed to no one in particular.

He wasn’t fine. His was the _opposite_ of fine. But hell if he was going to let his siblings know that.

Allison glanced towards Diego, who gave her a shrug in return.

“Maybe we should just go home,” Ben suggested quietly.

_Great idea._

Of course, therein lied the problem of actually trying to _walk_ home. Father wasn’t fond on the idea of weakness, of.... _reliance_ on other people. Unfortunately for Five, he couldn’t walk without being propped up by Ben and Vanya. In the struggle to leave the house party they had lost their candy-filled pillow cases - _unfortunate_ \- but it made it easier to help Five move without keeling over.

_Mostly._

His siblings at least afforded him some measure of silence on their journey back, probably wary of some unwanted outburst from their poor, beat up brother. Diego and Allison were muttering quietly in the back about god knows what while Klaus hauled the sole surviving pillowcase full of candy.

Good to know where his priorities lied.

His head _fucking_ hurt.

It was humiliating. Utterly humiliating. He had powers! He should of.... _god_ , how did he lose? How was he supposed to fight bad guys if he couldn’t take on a single higher schooler? Why didn’t his powers work when he needed them to?

Going out was a mistake. Halloween is a mistake. Nobody _needed_ candy anyways.

They finally returned back home where Luther continued to stew on the couch. He glanced at Five - _or what remained thereof_ \- before asking, “....is he?”

“I’m _fine_ ,” Five growled through gritted teeth, untangling himself from Ben and Vanya.

Silence fell over the room.

Luther opened his mouth, then closed it, presumably afraid to ask whatever asinine question he had floating around in his brain.

His head _fucking_ hurt.

“Alright, screw this. We went to a party and Five got himself beat up,” Diego said, arms crossed.

“A...party? Like with....people?”

“No, we partied with zebras, dumbass.”

“ _Diego_....” Allison cut in futilely. “For once can you....”

“Can I what? It was a stupid question.”

Five felt like he was falling again. He could feel a hand on his shoulder _\- a quick look told him it was Ben’s_ \- which helped anchor him to the floor.

“Why’d you go to a party?” Luther asked softly.

“Why not?”

“But then how did Five....”

“He was hurting her,” Five interrupted icily. “Some...dude. Big. Football player.”

“ _Hurting_ her?”

“Well....not yet. But he was _going_ to.”

“Who was he gonna hurt?” Klaus whispered.

“I don’t know. Some girl. Does it matter?”

A pause. Allison looked close to tears. Vanya was crying again.

“You...did the right thing, Five,” Allison said faintly. “You saved that girl from a lifetime of pain.”

“Thanks,” he mumbled in return, suddenly finding interest in the floor.

“For next time can you at least _tell_ us before you decide to beat someone up?” Diego implored, arms still crossed. “I mean...contrary to what you might think, we _do_ actually care about you, dumbass.”

“ _All_ of us do,” Allison agreed. “You scared us out there.”

“I...I didn’t....” Five trailed off.

How was he supposed to respond to _that_?

Ben squeezed his shoulder just a bit tighter. Vanya refused to let go of his hand. Allison had tears in her eyes and even Diego looked a bit worse for wear.

Is...is this what a family looked like?

Five bit back a sob.

He was so tired.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled, the words spilling out of his mouth before he had time to contemplate it.

And.... _shit_ , was he being hugged?

There were arms around him, squeezing at him and it was warm...not achingly so, but a _nice_ kind of warmth that he wanted to cocoon himself in and never leave.

He didn’t remember the last time he was hugged.

It was....nice.

Still, all things must end and the Hargreeves unprecedented circle of affection broke apart - _god, even Luther was here_ \- and they eventually made their way upstairs to inspect the sole bag of candy they managed to come home with.

“Okay,” Klaus started as they dumped the contents of the pillowcase onto the floor of Luther’s bedroom. “Time for the real question.”

“And what is that?” Diego asked, already in the process of unwrapping a cherry flavored dumb-dumb.

“Is there any candy corn?”

_Shit._

That was the whole reason he went out, right?

Five did it for the candy corn.

He could feel the atmosphere in the room shift and soon seven pairs of hands began to dig through their sugary horde.

_“Here’s some nerds...”_

_“....blowpops....”_

_“...ew, who eats Mary Janes?”_

_“....nobody likes the purple nerds...”_

_“....wait I’m calling dibs on the Twix....”_

There was no candy corn.

None.

Nada.

Zip.

“I’m sorry Five,” Vanya said sympathetically, holding a couple of mini Hershey bars in her fist. “You can still have some chocolate though...”

Five sighed, leaning back against the wall.

“Nah, I’m good.”

“Are you sure?” Klaus asked, sucking on a blow pop of indiscernible flavor.

“Yeah, I’m not that hungry anyways.”

That was a lie. Five was starving. Why did he think it was a good idea not to have any dinner? But he didn’t want to appear upset in front of his siblings, so the appearance of apathy will have to do.

He wanted his damn candy corn.

They decided to put on another movie while they ate, _Its a Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown_ again - _thanks Vanya_ \- and Five let himself be dragged under the sanctity of sleep to the sounds of quiet chatter from his siblings and candy of all varieties being chewed or traded amongst them.

He didn’t need candy corn anyways.

He _didn’t_.

Sleep did finally take him, but it certainly didn’t take long for Five to be jolted back into consciousness by someone shaking his shoulder.

“...Luther?” he asked blearily.

“Come out into the living room with me,” he whispered. “I have to show you something.”

“What time is it?”

Everyone else was asleep, probably in a sugar coma that will lend well to tomorrow’s training. Vanya was lying at the foot of the bed with her head on Ben’s elbow. Klaus was sprawled out on the floor while Diego and Allison were both leaning against the wall. The candy bag was empty.

They were all going to deal some serious digestive issues within the next day or so.

“It’s a little before midnight, c’mon.”

Five really didn’t want to get up, but also didn’t have the energy to tell Luther to fuck off. So two minutes later he found himself downstairs on the living room couch trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes.

“ _Why_ are we here?” Five asked impatiently.

Luther’s eyes darted around, almost as if he were afraid of being caught out of bed.

“Luther...”

“I...I went out,” he confessed.

“What?”

“While you guys were asleep. I went out...to....well....Trick or Treating.”

“Hang on. You went Trick or Treating? _You_? Weren’t you the one that was giving us a hard time before we left?”

Luther looked distinctly uncomfortable.

“I didn’t want to go...” he mumbled, avoiding eye contact.

“So then why did you go now?

A pause.

“And why did you wake _me_ up?” Five continued irritably. His head was still pounding.

“I...wanted to make it up to you...to all of you.”

“Make what up?”

Luther’s eyes darted again towards the staircase and back. He opened up his mouth as though to say something, but closed it. He instead reached into his pocket and grabbed some small crinkly bag that fit in the palm of his hand.

“It’s for you,” he said softly.

_What?_

Five frowned, grabbing the bag.

Was this...

“No way...” he murmured.

It was _candy corn_. Actual, real life candy corn. And he was holding it.

“How....?” Five asked breathlessly.

Luther shrugged, looking slightly embarrassed.

“I know you wanted some so I went door to door. It took a while because it was late and most people weren’t answering anymore. Luckily someone left a bowl outside and there was one bag of candy corn left.”

“Luther you really didn’t have...”

“I _know_ that,” he cut in, eyes now locked on Five’s. “But I _wanted_ to. To...make up for my behaviour earlier.”

Huh. Maybe his brother wasn’t so bad after all.

“And...well, I know you were upset about not getting any.”

Five couldn’t help but smile. It felt strange.... _smiling_.

“I....thank you. I mean...really, you didn’t have to go out of your way,” he responded, looking down at the precious cargo he held between his fingers.

“So...are you going to eat it?”

_Duh._

Five nodded, ripping open the bag.

This was it. The Halloween staple.

He popped one in his mouth and...and...

“How is it?” Luther asked uncertainly, noting the expression that crossed Five’s face.

“These are _disgusting_ ,” he grimaced. He grabbed a napkin and proceeded to spit it out.

“That bad?”

“They taste like _wax!_ Like...like sugary wax! How can anyone actually _enjoy_ this?”

He sighed, tossing the rest of the candy corn on the coffee table. This _really_ wasn’t his night.

“Can...I try one?” Luther asked hesitantly, eyeing the discarded bag.

“It’s your funeral.”

Luther didn’t hate it. Not like Five did. For him the taste wasn’t unbearable - _unpleasant, certainly_ \- but not inedible. Five could feel his stomach growling in protest from his lack of dinner, and he was almost tempted to swallow another one of those wax triangles just to shut up his over sensitive digestive system. Luther motioned towards the kitchen.

“You know with Dad and Pogo occupied we have free reign in there, right? You could make anything you want.”

_Shit._

_“You’re right,”_ Five breathed, dashing from the couch.

It was his time to shine.

Two slices of bread, a fuck ton of marshmallows and an inordinately large of amount of peanut butter to make the world’s greatest fluffer-nutter.

Midnight snack of champions.

Five made carried his concoction back into the living room, throwing the remaining marshmallows in Luther’s direction before going to town on his sandwich.

_Who needs candy corn anyways?_

Maybe this _wasn’t_ how his Halloween was supposed to go, but then again, Five rarely found that anything he did goes according to plan.

And maybe that was okay. Because now he has the best possible meal in the entire world.

_Who’s laughing now?_

“Happy Halloween, Number One,” he said contently, taking another bite out of his sandwich.

Luther smiled in return, grabbing a fist full of marshmallows.

Yes, things were _definitely_ okay.

“Happy Halloween, Five.”

Happy Halloween, indeed.


End file.
